Drum Corps Contest Gets Started In City With Noon Concert

August 02, 1985|by GHANA O. WILSON, The Morning Call

The Drum Corps International Eastern Championship kicked off activities with an appearance of two corps at Hess's Hamilton Mall store yesterday. The two corps that performed will be among 42 that will compete in the 12th annual competition Saturday.

About 2,500 people gathered to watch the performance of Avante Garde from New York and SunCoast Sound from Florida, according to Bill Higgins, committee member of Drum Corps International.

"It was very good performance. The crowd was very enthusiastic and it got the adrenaline of the people in this town flowing. We are priming people for the big night," Higgins said.

"About 6,500 people from drum and bugle corps from all over the world will be in Allentown this weekend," he said.

Higgins, a former member of a drum and bugle corps himself, said the members of the corps get musical training, comraderie and companionship out of their participation.

Higgins said it takes a lot of energy and discipline to participate in a corps. "It is like the army, but a lot tougher," he joked.

According to Higgins, some of the corps compete in 40-50 shows a year. "The drum and bugle corps season starts in early June and ends the second week in August, so that is a lot of traveling for a young person to do," he said. "You have to love it."

The youngest members of the drum and bugle corps will be performing at 2 p.m. Friday. "Some of the kids in those groups are as young as eight years old," Higgins said. The older ones will compete on Saturday starting at 7:45 a.m. Those corps have about 128 members each. The corps with the younger kids have about 45 members, he said.

The corps will be judged on their marching talents, brass and percussion playing and overall effect, Higgins said. Each of the 12 semi-finalist corps will receive a cash prize of $3,000.

"The kids are playing more for the prestige of winning the championship than the money, so that's why it is structured that way," Higgins said.

Charlie Bedner, ticket manager, said this will be the biggest showing the competition has had in the nine years it has been held in Allentown.

"This has been our best year yet with advanced ticket sales. We expect that the turnout from the walk-in crowd will be tremendous," he said.

The competition is not sold out yet, but both Higgins and Bedner said the 16,500-seatJ. Birney Crum Stadium will be full during the competition.

"People love coming to Allentown. The atmosphere of the stadium, the rolling hills, the nice people, and especially the lack of crime makes this a good area to hold the competition," Higgins said.